| The 500 Word Glossary of Leasing Terms |
The 500 Word Glossary or Leasing Terms
This is the real estate industry's most comprehensive guide of terms essential for any tenant that wants to be able to speak the real estate language.All commercial, retail and professional tenants must know these terms in order to be able to negotiate successfully. |
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$45.00 US 
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| The Most Frequently Asked Leasing Questions Booklet |
The Most Frequently Asked Leasing Questions Booklet
Answers to the questions that The Lease Coach is asked on a daily basis. |
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$45.00 US
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| 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies Booklet |
101 Tips, Tricks and Leasing Strategies
Guaranteed to help tenants out negotiate any landlord and save thousands of dollars on a commercial lease or renewal.
As a certified Lease Consultant Dale Willerton has used all of these tips and strategies when negotiating for his clients. No matter what your situation, you will find many of these tips translate into rent saving, protection, or piece of mind on your next lease or lease renewal. |
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| 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies CD |
101 Tips, Tricks and Leasing Strategies CD
Guaranteed to help tenants out negotiate any landlord and save thousands of dollars on a commercial lease or renewal.
As a certified Lease Consultant Dale Willerton has used all of these tips and strategies when negotiating for his clients. No matter what your situation, you will find many of these tips translate into rent saving, protection, or piece of mind on your next lease or lease renewal. |
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$95.00 US
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| 13 Costly Mistakes DVD |
13 Costly Mistakes Tenants Make Negotiating Their Lease or Renewal Live Video Presentation
13 Costly Mistakes is one of Dale Willerton's most popular seminar topics. Dale's live presentation of this seminar had been put on to CD to allow you to avoid the common pitfalls faced by tenants when negotiating a lease or lease renewal. |
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13 Costly Mistakes
CD |
13 Costly Mistakes Tenants Make Negotiating Their Lease or Renewal CD
13 Costly Mistakes is one of Dale Willerton's most popular seminar topics. Dale's live presentation of this seminar had been put on to CD to allow you to avoid the common pitfalls faced by tenants when negotiating a lease or lease renewal. |
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$95.00 US
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| Chiropractor Package |
Chiropractor Package
At The Lease Coach we have hundreds of chiropractic clients. This special chiropractic package includes:
- Negotiate Your Commercial Lease
- 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies - booklet
- 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies - CD (1 Hour)
- 3 hour Chiropractor Seminar (3 CD's)
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$130.00 US
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| Dentist Package |
Dentist Package
At The Lease Coach we have hundreds of dental clients. This special dental package includes:
- Negotiate Your Commercial Lease
- 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies - booklet
- 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies - CD (1 Hour)
- 3 hour Dentist Seminar (3 CD's)
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Currently not available.
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Software
Templates |
Software Templates
Lease form templates customized for both American and Canadians tenants. Software CD's include an audio CD of Dale Willerton walking you through each form. Leasing form templates include:
- Offer to Lease
- Lease Assignment Agreement
- Lease Rental Agreement
- Lease Extension Agreement
- 29 Point Lease Inspection Checklist
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Currently not available.
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The Complete
Lease Coach Kit |
The Lease Coach Kit includes everything seen above:
- Negotiate Your Commercial Lease (Book)
- 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies (Booklet)
- 101 Tips, Tricks, and Leasing Strategies (CD)
- 1 Hour Strategy Session
- 13 Costly Mistakes Tenants Make Negotiating Their Lease or Renewal (DVD)
- 13 Costly Mistakes Tenants Make Negotiating Their Lease or Renewal (CD)
- 500 Word Glossary of Leasing Terms (Booklet)
- Frequently Asked Questions (Booklet)
- Newsletter (12 Issues)
- *Bonus - Articles (Booklet)
A total value of $710.00 for only $595.00 when you buy The Lease Coach Kit |
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$595.00 US
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The Lease Coach Kit is guaranteed to be effective in assisting you in your commercial lease negotiations, however if after receiving The Lease Coach Kit, you feel that there is no valuable information in it and you would not use it to negotiate your commercial lease then send it back to us in 30 days and we will issue a full refund.
Articles
Dale Willerton has written numerous articles for Chiropractors, Dentists, Physicians, franchisees and independent business owners throughout the numerous trade magazines including Today's Chiropractic Lifestyle, Ontario Dentist, Alberta Dental Association Newsletter, Canadian Business Franchise, Opportunity World, Tanning Trends etc.
Negotiating The Rental Rate
Nine Negotiating Strategies For Lowering Rental Rates…
Tenants should not be afraid to negotiate aggressively on the rental rate. So why do commercial and retail tenants have such difficulty in this area? There are many reasons most commonly leading to ignorance. Not stupidity - but simply ignorance of market rental rates. Let me give you an example. Suppose the realtor wants you to pay $18 per square foot on new lease space (or even on a lease renewal). However, you know for a fact that every other tenant in the building is paying rent ranging between $11 to $14 per square foot (the market rent). You would have no difficulty justifying your negotiations would you? However, if you don’t know what other tenants are paying you will be uncertain, cautious and perhaps even afraid to negotiate aggressively since you lack knowledge about the market rents for that building.
One of the great misconceptions shared by tenants is that the realtor or landlord wouldn't’t dare ask for more rent than the space is worth. You need to consider that the landlord is paying the leasing agent commission not just to lease the space, but to lease it for the highest rent possible - and to the best tenant available. Commercial landlords justifiably want to maximize the return on their real estate investments, which is entirely acceptable. For this reason you should be prepared to negotiate aggressively to keep the rental rate down.
The following are Nine strategies for lowering the rental rate on commercial, retail and office leases:
Talk with other tenants in the building. Gathering information is worth the time it takes. You can learn a lot about the landlord’s property management practices, how tenants are treated and much more this way. Approach tenants in a straightforward and honest manner. Introduce yourself and be prepared with some good open-ended questions that will get the tenant started talking. Tenants will often tell you whether they plan to stay or move, if their rent is too high and other inside information only existing tenants know about.
Shop Around. Even if you’re in love with one property it pays to create competition for your tenancy among several landlords in one geographical area. Realtors and landlords will often soften on their asking rental rates when they realize you have sought out leasing options. Don’t hand the landlord your tenancy on a silver platter – make them earn it.
Let the landlord make the first offer. It’s much easier to negotiate when you see the business terms on paper. For this reason you should suggest that the realtor, leasing agent or landlord put their Offer To Lease on paper. Technically it will be your Offer to Lease but they will prefer to control the paperwork. Typically the deal will never get worse than the first Offer or Proposal they present so you can measure your negotiating progress by comparing where the deal started and where it finished. Frequently their first Offer is padded with room for negotiation - so never accept the first Offer outright.
Flinch. No matter what rental rate you’re offered it’s important to flinch a little. Act surprised that the rent is so high. Frequently the realtors first offer is made to test you, to see exactly how you react. If you look visibly relieved or even pleasantly surprised by how reasonable the rental rate is you can be sure it won’t come down.
Ask for Justification. When you think the rent is too high ask for justification. Question what other tenants are paying, specifically those who have recently moved in or renewed their leases. This is called the prevailing rate. When you learn that a tenant is paying $22 per square foot don’t stop asking questions there. Inquire about the incentives they received. How many months of free rent or how much tenant allowance money did the landlord give the tenant so they would agree to pay $22 per square foot?
Be prepared to Counteroffer. When you receive the leasing agents first Offer to Lease (or lease proposal) don’t counter offer right away. If you have no fear that the space will be leased to someone else it can often work to your advantage to wait a few days. Even let the allocated response time lapse so you can counter offer on your terms. Realtors know that tenants can be influenced by artificial deadlines that are just that - artificial. When making your counter offer you can do so by way of a separate letter stating your terms, or by changing the original document, initialing the changes, signing it and sending it back.
Step the Rent. If the leasing agent wants $18 per square foot on a five year term and seems inflexible try stepping (or escalating) the rent over time. For year one and two offer $15 per square foot - for year three and four offer $16.50 per square foot and finally for year five give them the $18 rate they were asking for. You can also break the rent into fifty-cent increments instead of full dollar amounts. For example, from year one to five the rent could step from $16 per square foot going up by fifty cents each year. On larger areas the savings can be worth thousands of dollars.
Walk away from the negotiating table. One of the great strategies for testing landlord flexibility on the rental rate is to walk away from the negotiating table. Make your counter offer, then back away for a number of weeks. I have effectively done this for my clients and seen the rental rate drop by more than $10 per square foot from the landlord’s original asking price.
Offset the Rent with other incentives. Sometimes the landlord won’t budge on the rental rate. This is not the end of your negotiations. Frequently the landlord will concede other incentives such as free rent or more tenant allowance dollars in order to achieve their rental goals. If you can’t bring the rent down – get the incentives increased?
When tenants hire me to negotiate their lease agreements I am very careful to explain that my goal is not to simply get them the lowest rental rate possible - but to get the tenant the best location possible from which to maximize their sales. Therefore, paying more rent is not necessarily undesirable if you are receiving a superior location.
One last word of advice. Don’t be afraid of rejection. So what if the landlord rejects your counter offer. Negotiating is a process, not an event. As long as you conduct yourself professionally you can re-open negotiations anytime. In leasing, tenants don’t get what they deserve – they get what they negotiate!
Dale Willerton is The Lease Coach – A Lease Consultant exclusively for tenants. Willerton is author of the book NEGOTIATE YOUR COMMERCIAL LEASE and speaks at franchise shows in Canada and the US. Visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com Consulting inquiries and leasing questions welcome.
Lease Negotiating Strategies & Tactics
Seven ways for tenants to improve their chances before and during commercial lease negotiations.
Many tenants will openly admit to me they are poor negotiators. These people I can help. Its the business owners, retailers and tenants who think they know it all that invariably won’t do any homework. At my seminars, I teach tenants that good preparation is an excellent substitute for brilliant negotiating…so do your homework. This is your assignment:
Adopt a “Negotiate To Win” mind set. Many tenants get so focused on not losing their shirt they don’t even try to win. When the CBC television network asked me to appear on their Venture program I agreed. A crew of four followed me around for half a day filming and interviewing me in action. Most of that footage was left on the cutting room floor but one statement that made it to air was this “there is nothing wrong with negotiating aggressively”.
Tenants need to realize that the landlord’s realtor or leasing agent is negotiating to win – and tenants can (and should) do the same. I’ve actually had tenant clients discourage me from getting them too good of a deal or it might spoil the landlord/tenant relationship. No wonder some tenants are paying too much rent in poor locations. You don’t have to apologize for negotiating aggressively if you speak and act professionally.
Determine what motivates the landlord. There are many different types of landlords such as financial institutions, pension funds, local developers and even small family property owners. You need to determine or find out who the landlord is and what their long-term goals are if you expect to have successful negotiations. For example, some landlords prefer the security that comes with a national tenant. Other landlords will want to maximize cash flow – so if an independent tenant will pay more rent than the national chain store they lease to the independent. While many landlords willing participate with flexible tenant incentives such as free rent and allowances this is not always the case. If you learn that a landlord for a particular property always insists on a personal guarantee and you are not prepared to give one then having this information in advance from the landlord’s leasing representative is helpful. Gathering information about the landlord will save you hours and even days going down what turns out to be the wrong path.
Ask questions – but watch what you say. Asking questions is simply the most useful activity you can engage prior to actually starting negotiations. Is the building for sale or conversely how long ago did the landlord develop or acquire it? Who really is the landlord and who makes the final leasing decisions? Ask which tenants recently moved in (or out), seek them out and interview those tenants. Be prepared to lead the initial leasing interview by asking pertinent questions. It’s also a good idea to pre think your answers to possible questions they will ask you. What you say and how you say it will help you or hurt you. Try to be friendly without being too informative. By telling the landlord’s realtor that your current lease is expiring in six months, that you like the location she has just shown you; or that you’ve just purchased a franchise for this area you may be pre qualifying your tenancy in their mind. Ask probing questions so that you will become an informed negotiator.
Avoid purely emotional decisions. A lady called me one day to inquire about our lease consulting services. She went on to tell me that just prior she had met with a local mall manager and looked at space for lease. Even though she didn't’t know what the landlord was asking for rent she wanted to lease the space and made her desire very clear to the mall manager. She loved the space and was determined to have it whatever the price. Keep your emotions in check to avoid being taken advantage of by the landlord. I admit that the majority of the decisions we make as humans are emotional decisions. Your intuition can be extremely helpful at times and should not be ignored. However, a tenants ability to weigh these emotions quietly on the side and make calculated decisions that will ultimately prove most effective in the overall decision making process.
Ask for more than you want. A retail tenant whom I have subsequently negotiated several Lease Agreements for was pleasantly surprised to hear that I had successfully negotiated the first 12 months free of rent on his five-year shopping center lease. I was hoping you would get me at least three months free, how did you do it, he questioned me with excitement. I replied by explaining that originally I had asked for 18 months of free rent, then settled for 12 months. The point is, most landlords will counter-offer your proposal so ask (or more precisely – negotiate) for more than you need, expect or want. This also applies to tenant allowances, the deposit, rent reductions and so on. Another tenant told me she needed a $500 per month rent reduction to make her business viable. I opened negotiations with the landlord asking for a $1000 per month reduction. We settled on $800 per month, saving the tenant $48,000 in rent over the next five years.
Walk away from the negotiating table. Once you’ve invested days, weeks or months negotiating on a particular site it’s hard to walk away from the negotiating table, but more often that not this is when the real negotiating begins. Some of the best deals I’ve gotten for tenants was after the deal fell apart or after we walked away. Most tenants can afford to walk away from a potentially bad deal, but few can afford to make a five or ten year mistake. If you are feeling unsettled about the deal I recommend you take a cooling off period of a few days before signing the Offer to Lease or Formal Lease Agreement.
Consider delegating the negotiations. When I wrote my book Negotiate Your Commercial Lease I hired a person experienced in the book industry to negotiate the terms and conditions of my publishing contract. Even though I am a skillful negotiator I recognized that I was emotionally involved – unfamiliar with the industry and that I couldn't’t afford to pay “stupid taxes”. This is the money you waste making unwise decisions. Consequently, the end result was much more in my favor with a lot less stress than had I stumbled through it myself. A professional Lease Consultant can help you with lease negotiations, site selection, document review or simply provide you with ongoing consulting. In my opinion it is a grave mistake to let a realtor represent you if that realtor’s fee is being paid by the landlord. It’s virtually impossible to serve two masters, which is why as a Lease consultant I exclusively work for tenants.
Dale Willerton is The Lease Coach – a Lease Consultant exclusively for tenants. Willerton is author of the book NEGOTIATE YOUR COMMERCIAL LEASE and speaks at franchise shows and delivers public seminars. . Visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com or email DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com – Consulting inquiries and leasing questions welcome.
Leasing Do’s and Don’ts for Dentists
By Dale Willerton – a Certified Lease Consultant
In leasing, tenants don’t get what they deserve – they get what they negotiate! These are the first words dentists see on the overhead projector when they attend one on my dental convention seminars. Since 1993, I’ve been helping dentists and tenants learn the Do’s and Don’ts of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals. In no particular order these are some important Do’s and Don’ts.
Do create competition for your tenancy. You should be negotiating on more than one location simultaneously. Especially with lease renewals, even if you don’t want to move. The key here is creating options so you can play one landlord against another. Let the landlord know you are receiving proposals on other sites. Remember that the tenant is the customer – the landlord is the seller. Make them earn your tenancy.
Do start the planning and site selection process well in advance.
For new locations, I recommend you start the site selection process at least six to twelve months in advance. Two months for site selection and negotiations, one month to finalize the Formal Lease Agreement, one month for design drawings, three to four months for the office build out, and a one-month cushion out of respect for Murphy’s Law. For lease renewals, you should start at least nine months in advance. If you can’t get a good deal in the first few months you can still exercise you option to renew or start the relocation process.
Do negotiate to win.
Many dentists are so focused on not getting taken during the leasing process that they forget to negotiate to win. So what are you trying to win? You want to get as many landlord inducements as possible…free rent, tenant allowance, no deposit, low rental rate, a great location and more. The landlord and its agents are playing to win and so should you. It’s okay to negotiate aggressively.
Do ask for more than you expect to get.
By asking, I really mean negotiate for more than you expect to get. If you want five months of free rent ask for eight months. If you want a $60,000 tenant allowance ask for $80,000. The reason so many tenants are disappointed with the outcome of their negotiations is that they neglect to build in room to negotiate. They ask for what they want and the landlord counteroffers with less. Just like a boxing match, negotiations should go a few rounds – that is the nature of the real estate industry.
Do your homework, talk to other tenants. You can gain a wealth of information by talking with tenants who have recently moved into a building or even those who have moved out. I recommend the direct approach. Tell the tenant who you are and why you’ve come to see them. Ask for their comments about the landlord, the property management, get into rent discussions, and so on. For lease renewals talk with other tenants in your building who have recently renewed to find out how much they are now paying and how smoothly the negotiations proceeded.
Do ask questions about the property. Tenants shouldn't’t rely on what the property manager, leasing representative or realtor voluntarily tell them about a specific property or leasing opportunity. You must ask questions about both the property and the landlord. Think of questions such as these: How long has this landlord owned this property? Is it for sale? How many other properties does the landlord own? Is there a local onsite management? What is the vacancy rate? Are any of the current tenants not renewing their lease and planning to relocate? You may be surprised with the conclusions you can draw from the answers to these questions.
Do charge GST on tenant allowance.
If you successfully negotiate for a tenant allowance make sure you also collect the Goods and Services Tax (GST). If you don’t collect 7% more from the landlord, you will be obliged to pay it out of the allowance. The best place to stipulate that GST is applicable to the allowance is right in the Offer to Lease so there is no arguing after the fact. You cannot collect GST on free rent or other incentives – just money being paid from the landlord to the tenant.
Do keep your success quiet.
The number one reason your landlord will use for raising your rent for the lease renewal period is that you have been successful. If you have been making a profit in a particular location you will likely not want to move plus you will be able to afford the rent increase. Some realtors and landlords will take advantage of dentists since they know how expensive it is to move and setup a new office.
Do negotiate for lease renewal incentives.
For some reason, tenants forget, neglect, or are simply fearful of negotiating lease renewal incentives. If your lese is expiring, ask yourself which inducements would the landlord give to a new dentist. If new tenants to the building were getting free rent and tenant allowances then why wouldn't’t an existing tenant with proven track record get the same consideration? The reason so many tenants hire The Lease Coach ® to negotiate for them is simple – 75% of the lease renewals we handle for tenants result in a substantial rent reduction, plus free rent and a tenant allowance for renovations.
Do walk away from a bad deal.
I am an optimist at heart, but in business you must look at pessimistic projections and worst-case scenarios, not just the optimistic picture. Years of frustration in a slow practice can be avoided if only more dentists would have walked away from poor locations and bad lease deals. Be careful, take your time, and get some help fro a Certified Lease Consultant before signing a Lease Agreement…it could save you a lot of money and heartache.
Don’t let one realtor show you space all over town.
When you’re doing site selection you should contact each property’s leasing representative individually. Telephone the For Lease number on the building and speak directly with the listing agent. This will help avoid commission splitting and get you the best service. If two real estate agents are involved they are legally and ethically both serving the landlord who is ultimately paying their commission.
Don’t telegraph your intentions.
What tenants say to the landlord’s leasing representative on the phone and while viewing space is often the tenant’s undoing. What you say (or even don’t say) plus your body language will come across loud and clear. Try to avoid too much enthusiasm or excitement about a location. As they say in poker – play your cards close to your vest.
Don’t make the first Offer.
The landlord’s representative should make the renewal proposal or the first Offer to Lease. This provides you with a platform or starting point from which to negotiate a better deal. Sometimes the leasing representative will offer you a better deal than you expected, but you will still want to negotiate for more.
Don’t accept the first Offer.
Once the landlord’s leasing representative has made the first Offer or proposal, the real negotiations begin. Don’t be too eager to simply accept their first Offer even if it seems reasonable. With patience and good communication you can improve almost any first Offer, which may be nothing more than a smoke screen anyway. One landlord’s first Offer to my client, a dentist, was at $28 per square foot. I was able to negotiate a long-term deal at under $10 per square foot plus a tenant allowance. This saved my client over $2,500 per month in rent for their entire eight-year renewal Term.
Don’t sign a ten-year lease Term.
If you are like most dentists entering a new location you will want to sigh a four-year term – plus one more year – plus 5 more years. This has tax benefits that your accountant can tell you more about. In addition, I recommend at least three five year renewal options.
Don’t give unlimited personal guarantees. Sometimes a personal guarantee is necessary, but I recommend what is called a Limited Declining Personal Guarantee. Say you are getting a $50,000 tenant allowance. It would not be unreasonable to guarantee a maximum of $50,000 declining by $10,000 per year thereafter. Many variations are possible – so get creative. There is a big difference between personally guaranteeing the entire Lease Agreement and giving a limited guarantee.
Don’t have false optimism.
When dentist tell me their practice isn’t doing well, but they want to renew their lease anyway, this is false optimism. Unless you change location or something else about the way your practice you should not expect your next five years to be any better than the last five years. It is difficult and expensive to consider moving after you have been in one location for a long time, but frequently it’s necessary. Dentists I’ve consulted to about moving reported that the relocation was scary, but well worth it once they got settled in the new location.
These are only a few of the Do’s and Don’ts that will help you when it comes to leasing commercial space. Ultimately your livelihood will depend on the location you select and the deal you make. Good luck and remember – In leasing, tenants don’t get what they deserve – they get what they negotiate!
Dale Willerton is The Lease Coach – a Certified Lease Consultant working exclusively for tenants. He is author of the book “ Negotiate Your Commercial Lease” and frequently speaks at dental conventions. The Lease Coach ® is proud to serve dentists right across the country. To speak with The Lease Coach ® in your city or to request any of our self help leasing books, videos or CD's visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com or call toll free 1 (800) 738-9202. To reach Dale Willerton at his Edmonton office call (780) 448‑2645 or email DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com for consulting inquiries.
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